Japanese 3×4 and 4×4 pseudo TLR
}} This page deals with the prewar and wartime cameras. See also the Herlight 4×4cm pseudo TLR made in 1947 by Ofuna. Concept and description Some pseudo TLR cameras taking 3×4cm pictures on 127 film were sold between 1937 and 1943 by Japanese companies. Their shape imitates a twin lens reflex but the finder is nothing more than a big brilliant finder, and they are fixed-focus. There is a variety of names, but they can be arranged in two groups. Inside a group, the various models seem to differ only by the nameplate, attached by two screws and easily interchanged, and by the lens and shutter markings. It is probable that these cameras were all produced in the same sub-contracting factories. The body is made of black bakelite body. "Senzen no rikō kamera – hoi", p. 21 of no. 14, about the Chukon Ref. See also this page about the Chukon Ref in the Ricoh official website. The film is advanced by a knob on the right hand side. The right hand side plate is pulled out for film loading and is locked by a button on the left hand side. This side plate also supports the advance knob, engraved with an arrow indicating the winding direction. All the models have a 50/6.3 lens and B, 25, 50, 75, 100 shutter speeds unless noted. In the following, the models are described in alphabetical order inside a group. It seems that the Clover Baby Ref was the earliest model, released in 1937, and that the last model was the Alma Baby Ref sold until 1943. Early type The early type, represented by the Clover Baby Ref and the Prince Baby Ref, has a plain silver viewing hood. The whole side plate is removable and there are no strap lugs. The Clover Baby Ref The Clover Baby Ref (クロバー・ベビーレフ) was featured in the new products column of the November 1937 issue of Asahi Camera. , p. 336. The company name that appears in an advertisement dated August 1937 Published in Asahi Camera, reproduced in , p. 69. is Hagi Kōgyō Bōeki, and the cost was . The camera has a Clover Baby Ref nameplate, the lens is an Argus Anastigmat and the shutter plate is engraved ARGUS in capital letters. It is thus similar to the Alma Baby Ref except for the nameplate. The Prince Baby Ref The Prince Baby Ref (プリンスベビーレフ) was advertised in 1939 and 1940. , p. 340. Its price was in October 1939, April and August 1940. Advertisements published in Asahi Camera, reproduced in : October 1939 on p. 91, April and August 1940 on p. 80. It is said to have an Argus lens and shutter, like the Alma Baby Ref and Clover Baby Ref. , p. 340. The company name that appears in the advertisements is the distributor Fukada Shōkai. attributes the Prince Baby Ref to Prince Camera Works, again this does not mean much for this camera. Common type The most common type has a black viewing hood with an X-shaped rib. The top part of the side plate is fixed and there are strap lugs on both sides of the body. The Alma Baby Ref The Alma Baby Ref (アルマ・ベビーレフ) was advertised in 1942 and 1943. , p. 334. The company name that appears in an advertisement dated May 1943 Published in Hōdō Shashin, reproduced in , p. 59. is Banno Bōeki, that was probably only the distributor. attributes the camera to Miyoshi Kōgaku, like the other Alma cameras. That does not mean much for this model, because the actual maker was probably some sub-contractor, common to all the cameras described in this page. The Alma Baby Ref cost in 1938. The lens and shutter are said to be called Argus. , p. 334. It is thus identical to the Clover Baby Ref, except for its Alma nameplate. The Baby Ref http://static.flickr.com/101/313106927_1b43bade1c_m_d.jpg Baby Ref and Union Ref leaflet. The Baby Ref (ベビーレフ) is known from a leaflet dating aroung 1937 Undated leaflet for the Victory, Semi Dymos, Reex, Baby Ref, Union Ref and Baby Chrome. where it is presented together with the Union Ref as an affordable reflex camera. The price was ¥15. No company name is indicated. There is no nameplate visible in the picture, perhaps because it was heavily retouched. The lens is advertised as a Clear Anastigmat. The shutter plate is optimistically marked Perfection at the top and Durable at the bottom, with a KS logo on the left. It is thus identical to the Mario Ref and Pilot Ref, except for the nameplate. The Baby Roll Ref The Baby Roll Ref appears in and is attributed to Yuzawa Mfg. Co. (probably a translation of Yuzawa Seisakusho, 湯沢製作所). McKeown, p. 1032. There are very minor differences in the shape of the advance knob and of the sideplate lock button. The nameplate and the plate above the hood are both marked Baby Roll Ref. The shutter speeds are B, 25, 50, 100: unlike most other models, there is no 1/75 setting. The shutter plate is marked Special Shutter at the top, perhaps Baby Roll Ref at the bottom and has a logo on the right representing a three-bladed leaf shutter. The lens is reported to be a Soft Anastigmat 50/6.3, a name that probably faithfully describes its picture-taking abilities. McKeown, p. 1032. The Chukon Ref The Chukon Ref (チューコンレフ) The name Chūkon can be written 忠魂 and then it means "faithful spirit", sometimes in the sense of "loyal dead" or "war dead". Riken used such weird "patriotic" names during the war. was featured in the new products column of the August 1939 issue of Asahi Camera , p. 337. . It was sold by Riken Kōgaku Kōgyō (today Ricoh) but it was not made by this company According to this page of the Ricoh official website. . The lens is written CHUKON ANASTIGMAT and the shutter plate is marked Chukon Ref at the top and R.K.K. at the bottom (for Riken Kōgaku Kōgyō). It is said that the camera cost ¥20 around 1940. Ricoh kamera no subete, p. 22. The Mario Ref The Mario Ref (マリオレフ) appears in an exhibition catalogue of the JCII. Watakushi no ni-gan-refu kamera-ten, p. 25. The name plate reads MARIO REF, the lens is a Clear Anastigmat 50/6.3 and the shutter plate is marked Perfection at the top and Durable at the bottom, with a KS logo on the left. It is thus identical to the Baby Ref and Pilot Ref, except for the nameplate. The exhibition catalogue attributes the camera to Tachibana Shōkai. The Pilot Ref 3×4 and 4×4 The Pilot Ref (パイロットレフ) exists in two versions. The 3×4 model was advertised between 1938 and 1942, alongside the 4×4 model in 1941 and 1942. , p. 338–9. The company name that appears in the advertisements is Tachibana Shōkai. Advertisements reproduced in , p. 83. The price varies between ¥16 and ¥23 depending on the date and model. The advertising pictures show no external difference between the two models, perhaps because they only display the 3×4 model. There are two nameplate variants, one is marked Pilott Ref in lowercase letters (with two "t") and the other is marked PILOT REF in uppercase letters (normal orthography). In the advertisements, the lens is called Clear Name inferred from the katakana クリアー and observed on the similar Mario Ref. Anastigmat and the shutter plate is written Perfection and Durable, like the Baby Ref and Mario Ref. A 3×4 example has been sold in a 2006 auction Example sold in the 30 September 2006 auction by Auction Team Köln, for €390. This example also appears in this page of the Auction Team Köln website, for a previous auction where it was presumably unsold. , with the Pilott Ref nameplate. The lens is a Simpu Anastigmat 50/6.3. (The "Simpu" lens name is also found on the Semi-Tex 4.5×6 folder.) The shutter has a 70 setting instead of 75, the shutter plate is marked Rapid at the top, Shutter at the bottom and at there is an N.S logo in a circle on the right. Notes Bibliography * Items 15, 78, 142, 175–6, 231. (See also the advertisements for items 155 and 177.) * Leaflet for the Victory, Semi Dymos, Reex, Baby Ref, Union Ref and Baby Chrome, published by an unknown company. Date not indicated. * Pp. 54–5. * P. 1032. * "Senzen no rikō kamera – hoi" (戦前のリコーカメラ・補遺, Prewar Ricoh cameras – appendix). Pp. 21–2. * Items 4018, 4031–2, 4052–3, 4063, 4065–6. * Tanaka Masao (田中政雄). "Rikō kamera no nagare" (リコーカメラの流れ, Evolution of the Ricoh cameras). Pp. 8–11. * Watakushi no ni-gan-refu kamera-ten (私の二眼レフカメラ展, Exhibition of twin lens reflex cameras). Tokyo: JCII Camera Museum, 1992. (Exhibition catalogue, no ISBN number.) P. 25. Links In English: * Pilott Ref in the highlights of the 25 March 2006 sale by Auction Team Köln In Japanese: * Clover Baby Ref in the Camera database of the Center of the History of Japanese Industrial Technology * Chukon Ref in the camera list of the Ricoh official website, with an article about Riken wartime camera names * * * * * Category: Bakelite Category: Ricoh